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New Delhi: Diligence and determination is required aplenty if a person is seeking redemption for revival in any discipline and when it's in sports, it becomes tougher. All existing sports drain out a person physically as well as mentally which makes a comeback even more challenging but 27-year-old Ishan Kishan didn't lose hope, setting an example for the entire cricketing fraternity.
On Saturday, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the team's squad for the forthcoming T20 World Cup 2026 and next month's New Zealand series and the most popular inclusion became that of Kishan, who had been out of the Indian national squad for a very long time, almost 2 years.
Having been associated last with the Indian national team in the final quarter of 2023 across formats, the previous 20 odd months proved to be traumatic for the southpaw. But the flamboyant batter never gave up all this while eyeing a comeback in the Indian team which he very well deserved.
From getting dropped from the national side to losing the BCCI central contract to hearing all the critics speak up and to making it in the home T20 World Cup squad, Kishan becomes an exemplary example of grit and consistency. Despite facing all the odds in these months, he vowed to make a return and secure his spot, which was always his.
Earning a spot in the nation side across formats back in 2021 was one of the major cricketing highlights for the young batter. Ishan proved the call of selection to be perfect as he made full use of it delivering swashbuckling performances on various occasions for Team India in the next two years. It was towards the end of 2023 that the left-handed batter started losing the plot.
His performances started to decline and with other batters waiting in the queue, he was eventually dropped out of the scheme of things. While he wasn't completely ignored but his non-commitment towards playing for India especially in the Test format and more focus on the cash-rich league IPL made him lose the BCCI central contract last year, along with Shreyas Iyer.
Amid a lot of outside noise where people criticised him for ignoring Team India commitments and preferring the cash-attracting T20 tournament, Ishan took a break from cricket for personal reasons.
During the period, he continued playing in the IPL but there was no help at all from the league as the batter could not impress much with his performances, making his appearances not worthy to provide aid for a national comeback, like it did in case of Iyer who led Kolkata Knight Riders to title triumph in 2024.
Ishan's impressive performances in the domestic cricket for the first 4 to 5 years of his career helped him earn a spot in the national team and when he was ignored, the same domestic performance this season helped him make a well-deserved comeback. Scoring runs just for fun would have been on the mind of the young batter but all those shots became more than worthy.
Ishan led his side Jharkhand fabulously in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy powering the team to their maiden SMAT triumph. Not only as a leader, where he helped his side win 10 out of 11 games, he proved himself as a quality batter emerging as the highest scorer in tournament with over 500 runs. Ishan played a pivotal role in the finale against Haryana as he smashed a brutal hundred to lead his team from the front.
With the New Zealand series serving as the last practice ahead of the marquee T20 World Cup 2026, Ishan Kishan would wish to make the most of the opportunity so as to secure a permanent spot in the shortest format for India.
